Sports – The Morning Mailhttp://www.morning.pk
Thu, 24 May 2018 17:24:51 +0000en-UShourly1https://wordpress.org/?v=4.8.6Ronaldo versus Salah — the Ballon d’Or on the line?http://www.morning.pk/2018/05/ronaldo-versus-salah-ballon-dor-line/
Thu, 24 May 2018 12:50:12 +0000http://morning.pk/?p=18720KIEV In an age when individual awards are given ever greater importance, Saturday’s Champions League final between Real Madrid and Liverpool — and Cristiano Ronaldo and Mohamed Salah — could determine the winner of the next Ballon d’Or. After all, Ronaldo has won the prestigious prize on the back of helping Madrid to each of […]

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In an age when individual awards are given ever greater importance, Saturday’s Champions League final between Real Madrid and Liverpool — and Cristiano Ronaldo and Mohamed Salah — could determine the winner of the next Ballon d’Or.
After all, Ronaldo has won the prestigious prize on the back of helping Madrid to each of their recent European Cup triumphs, in 2014, 2016 and again last year.
It is reductionist in the extreme to bring Saturday’s final down to just two players, given the strength in depth available — especially in attack — to Madrid and Liverpool.
But this is the era of the individual, at a time when Ronaldo and Lionel Messi have dominated the Ballon d’Or for a decade.
The status of each is such that the annual prize for the world’s best player generates ever fiercer debate.
Ronaldo has won the last two, but can he really win it again, having recently turned 33?
In a World Cup year, what happens in Russia will play a big part too — it is impossible to imagine Messi not winning a sixth Ballon d’Or should he lead Argentina to the title.
But Ronaldo can certainly make his case in Kiev, while this is also a golden opportunity for Salah before he leads Egypt into the World Cup.
— Ronaldo: An insatiable hunger —
Ronaldo’s decline in the first half of this season was as concerning as his reawakening in 2018 has been breathtaking.
The Portuguese star has scored 41 goals in all competitions this season, but an incredible 28 of those have come since late January.
Despite only scoring four times before La Liga’s winter break, he ended up with 26 goals in that competition, behind only Messi.
But it is the Champions League that really brings out the best in him.
Ronaldo scored in Manchester United’s 2008 final win over Chelsea, and has played a decisive role in each of the three finals won by Real since 2014.
This season, despite his poor domestic form, he had scored in every Champions League game prior to the semi-final win over Bayern Munich.
Karim Benzema’s brace in the second leg against the Germans was crucial, but neither he nor Gareth Bale have been close to Ronaldo’s standard this season.
The ‘BBC’ may no longer be so fearsome as a trio, but after that difficult spell, Ronaldo’s figures in 2018 mean he is making his case to be crowned the world’s best again.
“Cristiano knows that a player can have difficult moments. That’s why he’s the best,” warned Real coach Zinedine Zidane this week.
“Some players suffer under pressure, others just the opposite, and he is one of them. The more you criticise him, be careful.”
— Salah already breaking records —
This has already been a record-breaking season for the Egyptian, whose 32-goal tally was a new best in the Premier League for a 38-game campaign.
Overall, he has scored a remarkable 44 in all competitions since his arrival at Anfield from Roma, including 11 in Liverpool’s memorable run to the Champions League final.
He has been ably supported by Roberto Firmino and Sadio Mane, with that threesome netting 90 goals between them in all competitions.
Nevertheless, Liverpool’s hopes of winning a sixth European Cup depend to a large degree on Salah.
Whether that would be enough to land the Ballon d’Or as well is something that seems to split his team-mates.
“But what if Messi and Ronaldo win the World Cup? Do they deserve it? I don’t know what do you have to look at to win the Ballon D’Or,” said Georginio Wijnaldum this week.
“If it’s winning a prize, if it’s scoring the more goals. We will see.”
Defender Dejan Lovren was a little more optimistic.
“He can be in the top three best players in the world. He has the quality, the world-class experience already,” he said.
“He is so calm, a man down to earth and he deserves every credit for every goal he scored for now and definitely we will help him achieve this dream.” AFP

]]>Quiet man Zidane bringing stability from the shadows at Realhttp://www.morning.pk/2018/05/quiet-man-zidane-bringing-stability-shadows-real/
Thu, 24 May 2018 12:47:03 +0000http://morning.pk/?p=18717MADRID Cristiano Ronaldo was asked earlier this season to sum up Zinedine Zidane in a word and the one he picked was “winner”. At a Real Madrid media day on Tuesday, half a dozen players were rolled out to answer questions ahead of Saturday’s Champions League final against Liverpool, and one journalist made a point […]

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Cristiano Ronaldo was asked earlier this season to sum up Zinedine Zidane in a word and the one he picked was “winner”.
At a Real Madrid media day on Tuesday, half a dozen players were rolled out to answer questions ahead of Saturday’s Champions League final against Liverpool, and one journalist made a point of quizzing each of them about their coach.
“Zidane is one of the best I have ever had,” said Marcelo, who has played under a few, including Jose Mourinho, Carlo Ancelotti and Rafa Benitez.
“He was one of the greatest ever to play football,” Isco said. “Anything Zidane tells you, it stays with you.”
“We never get the impression he’s nervous,” Dani Carvajal said. “Whenever he speaks, your eyes are like saucers.”
So why is a coach, backed by the most high-maintenance squad in the world and on the brink of a third consecutive European success, still not considered much good?
After two and a half years, Zidane owns as many Champions League titles as Alex Ferguson, Pep Guardiola and Jose Mourinho. Beat Liverpool, and he will move above all three.
This time last year, his team were the first to defend the European Cup since AC Milan under Arrigo Sacchi in 1990. They were also the first Real side to do a La Liga-European Cup double in 59 years.
Some might point out Zidane is simply blessed with the best players but Real’s squad is not markedly, if at all, superior to rich rivals like Barcelona, Manchester City or Bayern Munich.
Perhaps Ronaldo’s assessment helps explain the apathy. Zidane wins, but in the current era of elite coaches, he does not fall easily into any bracket.
— Passion and motivation —
He is not the young, training-ground coach, preaching the virtues of high-pressing football. He is not a defence-first pragmatist, adamant solidity is the fastest route to results. He is not, yet, the established statesman, known for soothing egos and accommodating demanding owners.
“I am not the best coach, I am not the best tactician,” Zidane said on Tuesday. “But I have other things. I have passion, I have motivation, and those are worth much more.”
Certainly, he has won the confidence of his players. When Benitez was sacked in January 2016, Barcelona daily Mundo Deportivo described Zidane as merely a “sticking plaster”, but, 28 months on, Real’s star-studded dressing room has stayed stuck.
In fact, their run to the Champions League final has owed far more to grit and unity than any sense of aesthetic style or attacking brilliance.
Zidane may downplay his tactical influence but his decisions have played a big part too in Real beating Paris Saint-Germain, Juventus and Bayern Munich.
Against PSG, he switched seamlessly from a 4-3-3, that freed Isco, to a 4-4-2 in the second leg, with the diligent pairing of Lucas Vazquez and Marco Asensio out wide.
He was not afraid in the second leg against Juventus to bring off Gareth Bale – perhaps the one player dissatisfied with the current regime – and Casemiro at half-time, and against Bayern Munich in Germany, he replaced the injured Isco with Asensio, who went on to score the winner.
But most of all, Zidane has brought continuity off the pitch to a club that had hired eight different coaches in 10 years. On the pitch, he could conceivably name the same team against Liverpool that won last year’s final and the same but one, Pepe, that started in 2016.
“In my first few years there were a whole host of coaches, there was no stability,” captain Sergio Ramos said. “When you have stability in everything surrounding the team, everything is much quieter. Under him, we are all rowing in the same direction.”
There are some asterisks. Real Madrid barely laid a finger on Barcelona in the league, finishing 17 points behind their Catalan rivals, a gap that is unlikely to be tolerated again next season.
They have ridden their luck in Europe, where they were a dubious penalty away from going out to Juventus in the quarter-finals and fortunate to face PSG without Neymar and Bayern without at least half of their best players.
Real also have Ronaldo, the Champions League’s greatest ever player, who has delivered his second, third and fourth highest scoring totals in the competition under Zidane’s watch.
Third will become joint-first if Ronaldo scores twice in Kiev but Zidane is surely due credit for the Portugese finding the most lethal version of himself in the years after his 30th birthday.
With Ronaldo, as with the team, Zidane lets the player take centre stage. “If we played in the same team, he would be the star, for sure,” Zidane said, as Real celebrated winning last year’s final. “He scores goals and that?s the hardest thing of all.? AFP

]]>AB de Villiers announces retirement from international crickethttp://www.morning.pk/2018/05/ab-de-villiers-announces-retirement-international-cricket/
Wed, 23 May 2018 12:01:41 +0000http://morning.pk/?p=18501CAPE TOWN South African AB de Villiers has announced he is retiring from international cricket with immediate effect. “I’ve decided to retire from all international cricket with immediate effect. After 114 Test matches, 228 One Day Internationals and 78 T20 Internationals it is time for others to take over,” de Villiers said in a video […]

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South African AB de Villiers has announced he is retiring from international cricket with immediate effect.
“I’ve decided to retire from all international cricket with immediate effect. After 114 Test matches, 228 One Day Internationals and 78 T20 Internationals it is time for others to take over,” de Villiers said in a video posted to his Twitter account.
“I’ve had my turn and to be honest I am tired. This is a tough decision and I have thought long and hard about it and I’d like to retire while still playing decent cricket.”
AB stressed that after the series wins against India and Australia this was the right time to step aside. “It would not be right for me to pick and choose where and when and in what format I play for the Proteas. For me in green and gold, it must be everything or nothing.”
Ab de Villiers stressed that he would always be grateful for his teammates, coaches and the staff of Cricket South Africa for the support he had received through the years.
“It’s not about earning more somewhere else, it’s about running out of gas and the feeling that it’s time to move on. Everything comes to an end.”
The former South African skipper said he would remain the biggest support of the Proteas and Faf du Plessis. AFP

]]>Sri Lankan cricketers get 34pc raise in salarieshttp://www.morning.pk/2018/05/sri-lankan-cricketers-get-34pc-raise-salaries/
Wed, 23 May 2018 11:47:07 +0000http://morning.pk/?p=18489COLOMBO: Sri Lanka´s cricket board on Tuesday increased wages for national players by more than a third after making record profits in 2017. A total of 33 players under contract to Sri Lanka Cricket will also see match fees increase substantially despite dismal results on the field last year. “Sri Lanka Cricket raised the wages […]

]]>COLOMBO: Sri Lanka´s cricket board on Tuesday increased wages for national players by more than a third after making record profits in 2017.
A total of 33 players under contract to Sri Lanka Cricket will also see match fees increase substantially despite dismal results on the field last year.
“Sri Lanka Cricket raised the wages of national players by 34 percent for the period of 2018/19, following strong results achieved during the concluded financial year,” it said in a statement.
It did not give a breakdown of individual salaries, but they are known to be among the highest paid individuals in Sri Lanka.
Last week, SLC announced a record annual profit of 2.12 billion rupees ($14 million) for 2017, 33 times what it made the year before.
Revenues of six billion rupees were roughly double 2016 figures.
Official sources attributed the sharp profit rise to a packed 2017 calendar which featured home series against Bangladesh, India and Zimbabwe.
Broadcasting earnings from an India tour were thought to be a major contributor.
The cash bonanza was the only good news from a woeful spell for Sri Lanka cricket, with the islanders enduring their worst year on the pitch since winning the World Cup in 1996.
They suffered a series defeat against India, lost a home one-day series to bottom ranked Zimbabwe and crashed out of the Champions Trophy early. AFP

]]>National cycling federation demands velodromes for cyclistshttp://www.morning.pk/2018/05/national-cycling-federation-demands-velodromes-cyclists/
Wed, 23 May 2018 11:30:34 +0000http://morning.pk/?p=18483ISLAMABAD Pakistan Cycling Federation (PCF) Wednesday urged for building velodromes for the national cyclists in the country to groom their talent. Talking to APP, PCF Secretary Syed Azhar Shah said there is plentiful of talented cyclists in the country but velodromes are needed to uplift the cyclists. “There is a velodrome in Lahore which is […]

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Pakistan Cycling Federation (PCF) Wednesday urged for building velodromes for the national cyclists in the country to groom their talent.
Talking to APP, PCF Secretary Syed Azhar Shah said there is plentiful of talented cyclists in the country but velodromes are needed to uplift the cyclists.
“There is a velodrome in Lahore which is in a very bad condition and we have written to Punjab Sports Board (PSB) multiple times but yet the velodrome has not been repaired,” he said.
He appealed the government to build velodromes in other cities as well so that the cycling talent in the country not gets wasted.
“Every year the federation sends a coach and a player to Korea for training. This year cyclist Haleema and coach Misbah Mustaq were sent for training,” he said.
Speaking about different cycling tournaments to be held this year in the country, he said National Cycling Race will be held in Quetta and National Cycling Coaching Course in Lahore in August, National Cycling race will be held from Karachi to Hyderabad in September, 64th National Men’s and Women’s Track Cycling Championship will be held in October in Lahore, Tour de Gilgit Cycling race and National Road Race from Islamabad to Murree will be held in November.
“Inter Provincial Coordination (IPC) Cycling Track Championship will also be held in Lahore in November,” he said added the government needs to pay more attention to the game of cycling as to achieve medals at international level. APP

]]>Cricket Australia snares major new sponsor despite scandalhttp://www.morning.pk/2018/05/cricket-australia-snares-major-new-sponsor-despite-scandal/
Wed, 23 May 2018 10:00:52 +0000http://morning.pk/?p=18445Sydney Cricket Australia signed a four-year deal with a new shirt sponsor Wednesday, seemingly unperturbed by the ball-tampering scandal that badly damaged the sport’s reputation. Alinta Energy will become the principal partner of the men’s team in all three formats of the game, securing branding rights to have its name on shirts for all international […]

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Cricket Australia signed a four-year deal with a new shirt sponsor Wednesday, seemingly unperturbed by the ball-tampering scandal that badly damaged the sport’s reputation.
Alinta Energy will become the principal partner of the men’s team in all three formats of the game, securing branding rights to have its name on shirts for all international cricket played in Australia.
They replace Qantas Airways, although the national carrier remains a key sponsor and will continue to be the shirt partner for overseas tours.
No value was put on the new deal, which follows the tampering scandal in South Africa this year that led to bans for then captain Steve Smith, his deputy David Warner and batsman Cameron Bancroft.
In the fallout, fund manager Magellan tore up its contract as naming rights sponsor for Australia’s domestic Tests while several companies withdrew their partnerships with the three players. AFP

]]>Pakistan to host 7 international squash events this yearhttp://www.morning.pk/2018/05/pakistan-host-7-international-squash-events-year/
Tue, 22 May 2018 11:44:37 +0000http://morning.pk/?p=18298ISLAMABAD The Professional Squash Association (PSA) has allotted seven international tournaments to Pakistan this year. Talking to APP, Pakistan Squash Federation (PSF) vice president Qamar Zaman said the PSA had granted Pakistan tournaments amounting to US $ 5,000 to $ 70,000. “Out of 7, three events will be held in Islamabad while two each in […]

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The Professional Squash Association (PSA) has allotted seven international tournaments to Pakistan this year.
Talking to APP, Pakistan Squash Federation (PSF) vice president Qamar Zaman said the PSA had granted Pakistan tournaments amounting to US $ 5,000 to $ 70,000. “Out of 7, three events will be held in Islamabad while two each in Karachi and Lahore,” he said.
He said Islamabad had successfully hosted one tournament such as; Pakistan Squash Circuit (US $ 10,000 of mens and 5,000 of womens). “After Eid the PSA tournaments will be held in Lahore and then in Karachi and Islamabad,” he said.
Qamar said international players would be seen in action in the tournaments and our national players will also get a chance to improve their rankings through these tournaments.
“Pakistan Air Force (PAF) is doing all-out efforts for promotion and encouragement of squash in the country. Ramadan training camp has been organized in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in which 70 players are participating in categories including Under-9, Under-11 and Under-13,” he said.
He said league matches are also being played every day in the camp and the final round will be held on June 12. “The aim of this training camp is to bring talented junior players to fore and groom them,” he said. APP

]]>ICC test ranking: Pak to overtake England if win both matcheshttp://www.morning.pk/2018/05/icc-test-ranking-pak-overtake-england-win-matches/
Tue, 22 May 2018 11:38:06 +0000http://morning.pk/?p=18295ISLAMABAD Pakistan will look to overtake England to reach 95 points in the MRF Tyres ICC Test Team Rankings if they pull off victories in both matches at Lord’s (May 24-28) and Headingley (June 1-5). A 2-0 result will see Pakistan overtake England to reach 95 points while a 1-0 series win will lift Pakistan […]

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Pakistan will look to overtake England to reach 95 points in the MRF Tyres ICC Test Team Rankings if they pull off victories in both matches at Lord’s (May 24-28) and Headingley (June 1-5).
A 2-0 result will see Pakistan overtake England to reach 95 points while a 1-0 series win will lift Pakistan by six points to 93 points and just one point below England, a press release Tuesday said.
However, a 2-0 win for England will lift them to 101 points and within one point of New Zealand, with Pakistan losing six points with such a verdict and slipping to 81. A 1-0 series win will see England gain one point and reach 99 while Pakistan will be on 83 points, four points below their present tally of 87 points.
A drawn series will see England lose one point and Pakistan gain one point, while Pakistan will improve substantially if they win the series.
Series scenarios: England win 2-0 – England 101 points, Pakistan 81; England win 1-0 – England 99, Pakistan 83; Drawn series – England 97, Pakistan 88; Pakistan win 1-0 – England 94, Pakistan 93; Pakistan win 2-0 – Pakistan 95, England 93.
In the MRF Tyres ICC Test Player Rankings, England captain Joe Root is the leading batsman from either side at third position and would be looking to inch back towards the 900-point mark, which he had held on to until September last year, and close the gap of 45 points with India captain Virat Kohli (912).
Wicketkeeper-batsman Jonny Bairstow (13th), experienced opener Alastair Cook (16th) and all-rounder Ben Stokes (25th) are their other leading batsmen.
The seaming home conditions will also give fast bowler James Anderson a chance to seize back the top position as only six points separate him from South Africa’s Kagiso Rabada, while 12th-ranked Stuart Broad would be looking to move into the top 10.
Pakistan opener Azhar Ali (12th) dropped two places after the recent one-off Test against Ireland and this series provides him the opportunity to regain a place in the top 10 while Asad Shafiq (32nd) would be similarly looking to move up after dropping seven places following the Dublin Test.
Pace bowlers Mohammad Assad (29th) and Mohammad Amir (37th) would be relishing the prospect of playing in English conditions after tuning up well for the series including a good account in the Dublin Test. APP

]]>Mansoor Ahmed Hockey Stadium to be built in one year’s time, says PHF officialhttp://www.morning.pk/2018/05/mansoor-ahmed-hockey-stadium-built-one-years-time-says-phf-official/
Tue, 22 May 2018 11:32:56 +0000http://morning.pk/?p=18292ISLAMABAD The stadium in Islamabad in memory of late Olympian Mansoor Ahmed will be built in one year’s time. Talking to APP, a Pakistan Hockey Federation (PHF) official said Pakistan Sports Board (PSB) last week had announced to construct a stadium in Islamabad. “The grant for stadium and astro-turf had been approved and hopefully the […]

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The stadium in Islamabad in memory of late Olympian Mansoor Ahmed will be built in one year’s time.
Talking to APP, a Pakistan Hockey Federation (PHF) official said Pakistan Sports Board (PSB) last week had announced to construct a stadium in Islamabad.
“The grant for stadium and astro-turf had been approved and hopefully the stadium will be completed in six months to a year’s time,” he said and added the stadium will be built next to the Naseer Bunda’s Hockey stadium.
He said the stadium will be alike Naseer Bunda’s Hockey stadium. Mansoor Ahmed, 49, passed away on May 12 after suffering for weeks from complications stemming from a pacemaker and stents implanted in his heart.
He had become a sporting icon in Pakistan’s hockey circles after helping the country win the 1994 World Cup in Sydney with his penalty stroke save against the Netherlands in the final.
Mansoor played 338 international matches and also participated in three Olympics and various other high-profile events in a career spanning from 1986 to 2000.
In addition to being named the world’s best goalkeeper on four occasions, Mansoor was bestowed with a presidential award in 1988 and the Pride of Performance in 1994. APP

]]>Kane named England’s World Cup captainhttp://www.morning.pk/2018/05/kane-named-englands-world-cup-captain/
Tue, 22 May 2018 11:29:06 +0000http://morning.pk/?p=18289London Tottenham striker Harry Kane will be England’s captain at the World Cup in Russia, the Football Association announced on Tuesday. Manager Gareth Southgate has shared the leadership role around since taking over as manager in 2016 but has now settled on Kane for the tournament, which begins next month. The 24-year-old, who has scored […]

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Tottenham striker Harry Kane will be England’s captain at the World Cup in Russia, the Football Association announced on Tuesday.
Manager Gareth Southgate has shared the leadership role around since taking over as manager in 2016 but has now settled on Kane for the tournament, which begins next month.
The 24-year-old, who has scored 12 goals in 23 international appearances, was first handed the armband for the qualifier against Scotland last June and has skippered the side on three further occasions.
Southgate, who announced his decision during a team meeting at England’s training base on Monday, said: “Harry has some outstanding personal qualities. He is a meticulous professional and one of the most important things for a captain is that they set the standard every day.
“He has belief and high standards and it is a great message for the team to have a captain who has shown that it is possible to be one of the best in the world over a consistent period of time.”
Southgate and Kane, who burst onto the senior international scene with a goal 79 seconds into his 2015 debut against Lithuania, appeared in a live video posted on England’s Twitter account soon after the official announcement.
“It’s an amazing honour,” said Kane. “Obviously you always dream of playing for England, growing up. To be the captain is that little bit more.
“So excited, obviously excited for the World Cup. I just can’t wait to be there and experience it. To be leading the lads out is going to be special. But for me nothing changes — I’m the same person, the same player, and it’s just about the team. We’ve just got to do what we can and go as far as we can.”
Kane’s Spurs team-mate Eric Dier and Liverpool captain Jordan Henderson were seen as the other likeliest candidates for the role.
The standout star in England’s inexperienced squad, Kane will travel to his first World Cup full of confidence after another outstanding season in which he passed the 30-goal mark for club and country for the fourth season in a row.
Kane has netted 45 goals in 52 appearances for Spurs and England in 2017/18, missing out on a third consecutive Premier League Golden Boot title to Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah.
His goals fired Spurs to third place in the Premier League, meaning they qualified for the Champions League for the third season in a row.
The retired Wayne Rooney, the dropped Joe Hart and Gary Cahill, who is heading to Russia after a last-minute reprieve, have also captained England under Southgate.
“Of course, Harry will need the support of the other good leaders that we have got around him,” said Southgate.
“You don’t become a top team by just having a good captain with good values because that has got to spread right throughout the group but I think he is the one who is ready to take that challenge on.” AFP